Process of plating wood doors.



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v UNITED STATES PATENT f OEEIcE.

WILLIAM A. WARNER, or A'RRIDeEPoR'r7 ooI\Ii.\iEoTIoIIT.l

PROCESS OF PLATING WOOD DOORS.

SFEGIFEGATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 678,148, dated July 9,1901.

.Application ledrSeptemher 28, 1900. Serial No. 31,375. (No specimens.)

by meansof certain applications,includin g lany electrolytic bath, andhas for its object to render the process expeditious, besides producingan improved article.

It is further an object of my invention to provide a processwherebydoors or 'similar articles may 4be thoroughly plated withl a metaldeposit, such as copper, brass, or other material, and, further, toproduce a door whichwill be thoroughly inclosed in metal without anyvisible seams, so as to have the appear-- ance of a solid metal door,yet becheaper, lighter, and generally more desirable than if it weremade of solid metal or covered with sheets, as is now sometimes done.Doors of this class can' be extensively used in several places-rst, asmain-entrance doors to flats or expensive bui1dings,where grand,massive,

and elaborate eectsv are desired, and intemy invention over the oldstyle of doors is in its lasting quality and the saving of expense eachyear or two for burning, rubbing down, revarnishing, dac., which is anecessity with the old methods of covering or protecting.

While my invention may be carried into effect by any suitable mechanismwhich is adapted for the purpose, I have illustrated on an accompanyingsheet of drawings three articles which are used in the carrying out ofmy invention and by means of which the work may be performedexpeditiously and practically. p

Referring, therefore, to the accompanying sheet of drawings, formingpart of this specication, and upon which similar characters of referencedenote like or corresponding parts throughout the several views, Figure1 shows a front and edge View, respectively, of a door trimmedand readyto be completed by my improved process. Fig. 2 is a detailed Fig. 4L isa perspective View, partly broken away, of a tank such as I employin thecarrying out of my process and which isiused to submerge the woodarticle for applying the filler. Fig. 5 is a perspective view' of anadjustable table upon which the door is laid for preparing and coveringwith aconductin'g material. Fig. 6 is a sectional perspective View ofthe electroplating-tank in which the door is submerged' for the final orelectroplating process.

In the carrying out of my invention upon new doors or other articles tobe treated they are first filled with a wood filler of any desiredkind-as, for instance, a mixture of 1inseed-oil and resinous gu m-whichis designed to Waterproof and protect the wood thoroughly and preventwarping. In order to apply this ller, I place it in a tank A, havingvsuitable guides B to retain the door `in a true vertical position. Saidtank is further itted with a steam-pipe C for heatingthe iiller'andfinally with hooks D to engage the supports E on the door F and toretain thesame in a submerged position. The doorsl are'pla'ced in theheated filler of this tank'iand allowed to remain until thoroughlycoatedand penetrated with the substance, after which' they are hoisted,permitted to drain off, and then laid upon the table G for furtherapplications. The door is retained by small shoulders on verticalsupports H, carried by the table, one of said supports being secured toan adjustable base Lwhereby doors of varying sizes may be accommodated.While contained upon this table in the manner indicated the door isrubbed smooth and coated with varnish, shellac, or other preparatory.material and then dried, said operation of rubbing and varnishing beingrepeated as often as necessary to receive the desired surface. The edgesof the door are next trimmed with suitable sheetmetal strips, asindicated in the drawings,

loc 'Y wherein J represents a thin metal strip of corresponding Width tothe door attached to the four edges by means of nails, screws, orcement. These metal strips may also be applied to the inner edges K ofthe panel, if desired, and likewise attached to the front and back faceL of the lower edge of the door in such cases Where an eXtra-heavycovering of that part is desired. The material used for this purpose ispreferably sheet copper, brass, or bronze, and the strips are obviouslyshaped to conform and fit to the edges of the door, including themortises, if desired. After this sheet met-al is applied in the placesdesired the entire door is prepared to receive the electrodeposits, asfollows: The face of the strip on the edge of the door is preferablycovered with a metallic insulating material, such as Wax or asphalt andvarnish, after which the entirety is coated with a metal substance, suchas thin metallic leaf, metallic bronzepowder, orcommon varnish or Waxwith plumbago. When the coatings applied as above become dry, the dooris rinsed and ready to receive the electrodeposit.

The electrodeposit or final coating of the door is applied in the tankM, Where the door is supported in a somewhat similar manner to thatshown in the preceding tank, being supported in a manner to retain thedoor in a true vertical position` and for this purpose a non-conductinglining N is used Within the guides O, together with such other furtherinsulations as may be found necessary. Beside the door and Within thetank I provide a supporting-rod P, having attached thereto an electricconducting-Wire Q, and to this supporting-rod is attached the metallicplate R, designed to be dissolved and deposited upon the door. Thesecond conducting-Wire S, by means of which the complete circuit isformed, is preferably attached to the metal strip upon one edge of thedoor, and thus it will be seen that when the Wires are attached to asuitable dynamo (not shown) the metal is dissolved from the plate anddeposited upon the door, Where it is finally distributed over its entiresurface to any thickness desired, in accordance with the amount of themetal employed and length of the operation.

The advantages obtained by covering the edges of the door with asheet-metal strip are, first, its high conductibility of electriccurrent, making a complete circuit around the door,which acts as astarter, so to speak, for l the deposition ofthe copper, and, second,

an even and unbroken surface between the @rame two. Furthermore, withthe strip arranged upon all sides of the door and the face of the samecovered With metallic substances a uniform deposit is secured upon theentire face. Were the metal connections made upon the face of the doordirectly opposite the anodes and Without the use of the metal strip, aheavier deposit would be secured at that point and a very light one uponthe edges of the door. It is desirable, of course, to have the depositover the entire door as near uniform as possible; but if there is to beany deviation it should be preferably heavier upon the edges,since thereis Where the greatest amount of wear comes.

It will be obvious that the details of my invention may be variedWithout departing from the true essence thereof, and for that reason Ido not wish to be limited in any Way to the article shown for carryingout the invention or, in fact, to the exact method of filling the Wood,since that might be done with a brush, if preferred.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secureby Letters Patent, is-

l. The herein-described process of metalplating wood doors whichconsists in first filling the same, then covering the edges with thinmetal strips, next covering said door with a thin layer of conductingmaterial, and finally subjecting the Whole to anelectroplating-bathwhereby an electrodeposit is formed over said conducting-layer.

2. The process of plating Wood doors or similar articles, which consistsrst in filling said door, second in applying to the edges thereof thinmetal strips, third, insulating the face of said strips, fourth applyinga coating of metallic bronze-powder to the face of the door, and finallyin electrically depositing a metal coating on the faces of said door.

3. The herein-described process of metalplating Wood doors whichconsists in first filling the same, next covering the edges with thinmetallic strips, third in covering the faces of the door up to the edgeof said metal strips with metallic bronze-powder,and finally inelectrically depositing a metal coating on said door.

Signed at Bridgeport, in the county of Fairfield and State ofConnecticut, this 241th day of September, A. D. 1900.

VILLIAM A. VARNER.

lVitnesses:

C. M. NEWMAN, W. V. DEvIr'r.

IOO

